• ESPN and Uninterrupted, the digital media company founded by LeBron James and Maverick Carter, will debut an original series, More Than An Athlete, Nov. 20, exclusively on ESPN+. The eight-episode series follows James’ journey from basketball prodigy to global sports icon, businessman and philanthropist via the bonds of friendship and partnership among four men over more than two decades: James, Carter, Randy Mims and Rich Paul.

• The NFL and Mexico's President-Elect Andrés Manuel López Obrador confirmed that the third game of the existing agreement signed in 2016 will be played in 2019 at Estadio Azteca. The date and time of the game will be determined in conjunction with the release of the 2019 NFL schedule next spring

• NBC Sports and the Premier League are partnering to present their second Premier League Mornings Live, scheduled to take place in New York on Saturday, Dec. 8. The event will include a turf pitch, the Premier League trophy, club mascots and special guests. The initial fan fest in September was attended by more than 2,000 on a rooftop overlooking the U.S. Capitol in Washington D.C.

• Between now and Nov. 19, every use of #SaluteToService on Twitter will generate a $5 donation, up to $5 million, to the NFL’s military non-profit partners – including the Pat Tillman Foundation, TAPS, USO, Wounded Warrior Project and the Bob Woodruff Foundation.

Hart will take the lead in humorous “360-degree marketing campaign” throughout 2018 to include TV, digital, social media and experiential, as well as “integration with Kevin's latest comedy tour,” titled ‘Irresponsible.”

This leg of the campaign ties in with a Mountain Dew activation starting at NBA All-Star 2018 with Hart undertaking a “nationwide search for a new CourtSidekick, giving fans the chance to score ultimate access to the most coveted seats in sports: Courtside at the NBA Playoffs.”

"I'm literally the biggest NBA fan you will ever meet,” Hart said in a statement.

“In fact, you could say I'm the king of watching basketball – but I'm still looking for my CourtSidekick.”

According to Chauncey Hamlett, senior director-marketing for Mountain Dew, “Kevin embodies the bold attitude, energy and spirit of Mountain Dew Kickstart, so he was a natural choice to be the face of the brand.

“We're excited to be partnering with him, and can't wait to give a lucky Dew fan the chance to be his CourtSidekick during the NBA Playoffs this year."

During NBA All-Star Weekend, Mountain Dew, an official league partner, will be title sponsor for the Mountain Dew Kickstart Rising Stars, which sees young players from the U.S. who entered the league during 2016-17 or 2017-18 versus a team of young international players who entered the NBA during the past two seasons (TNT 9 PM ET).

Mountain Dew will also have a Kickstart “Closer Than Courtside” Courtside Studios pop-up experience (Pico & Figueroa) featuring Hart as well as music, interactive events and visits from current and legendary NBA players.

For the CourtSidekick activation, Mountain Dew said that now through March 19, people “can enter the #CourtSidekickContest by creating a social post showing Kevin and Mountain Dew Kickstart why they're the perfect CourtSidekick and tagging #CourtSidekickContest on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.” (Details here.)

According to the PepsiCo brand, Hart and Dew judges will review all entries and narrow the field to the top five finalists. People will then have a chance to vote to select the winner, scheduled to be unveiled April 5.

As for Hart, he is all in. ”I’m happy to be partnering with Mountain Dew Kickstart to kick off the CourtSidekick Contest and find the right person to help me take my NBA game-watching to the next level."